As we know "Psy's music is dominating the world" but I never heard Gangnam Style until it was passed along on the local expat blogs. Then it was popping up on CNN, The Chive, Cracked, and various other foreign media outlets. Only after that did I start hearing it everywhere in Korea and students started telling me about it. Now I hear it being played in classrooms by teachers who tell their students how it is now popular everywhere.

My question is: Was the song huge here first then spread overseas? Or did Koreans only take notice of it when it received international praise and attention?

I don't quite get the appeal .. maybe because I have been in Korea to long.
one of my friends from back home posted a link on facebook asking who knows this song? wow I was surprised so many people responded.
and these guys know nothing about Korea. NOTHING!

for me.. I mean it's not the macarena and will never be as popular as that song. but I guess in the world of YOU TUBE, where talking dogs have 1 billion hits.. I guess a fat korean ajossi can be successful for a day!

I agree with all your comments. I think he's on minute 10 of his 15 minutes of fame. He just got signed by a big producer but who is really going to buy one of his albums? His song wouldnt be that popular if it wasnt for the video.

Do you know/think that the song is so huge here now is because it is now famous overseas?

K-pop is a part of the K-gov't effort to land Korea in people's consciousness through branding.

The insane amounts of hits on YouTube, the coordinating of Girl's Generation on Letterman, the President showing up with K-pop singers in other countries, the endless coverage in the K-press et al is all part and parcel of this huge effort to elevate Korea's image.

As large amounts of resources are commited to this project (i.e. people of position and influence get paid) you are guaranteed to see further coverage of K-popsters in the foreign press.

If you will remember, the K-pop singer Rain was selected as Time magazine's 'most influential person in the world' for 2010...because it was based on the number of online votes...

Rain, a South Korean actor and singer, has been voted the most influential person in the world in an online poll.

In a poll conducted by TIME magazine, Rain ranked first in the voting for this year's most influential people.

Rain has been making onto the TIME 100 online list for six straight years since 2006.

Rain has outranked some of the most well-known figures in the world. Mark Zuckerberg, the creator of Facebook and The Person of the Year for 2010 selected by TIME magazine, was ranked 28. Michelle Obama, the first lady of the U.S., ranked 32, outpacing Barack Obama, her husband, who was placed 46th. Oprah Winfrey, a famous TV show host, was ranked 84.

Putting together a project with plausible interest and merely tallying up a huge amount of hits and 'like' votes has become a surefire way to become popular and newsworthy in today's world.

Some funny fat guy getting some attention and money...big deal. The problem is that the whole situation begins to influence not only what type of music environment is created but spills over into shaping social culture and the general (even natural) environment we live in.

Some people like shiny/disposable plastic/ here today gone tomorrow culture.

I'm just amazed at the number of people on this blog who seem to take any success by Koreans personally and seem to wish them failure, or for them to fall on their asses as soon as possible.

For me this goes for crap pop music wherever it comes from. The less successful it is, the less I'm forced to listen to it. They played it three times consecutively in the gym the other day. Should that make me want the song to do even better? Do I want to hear it blaring out of speakers in bars and cafes when I holiday in Europe next summer? Of course I want it to die as quick a death as possible.

Psy was popular in Korea before Gangnam Style took root and all credit to him for having a global hit.

I normally look down on K-pop due to its lack of originality and expression but I like Psy's music. Plus, I would describe his style as alternative pop.

I think I read that in Korea he is the most requested artist for college/university festivals or he makes the most money by them. So, he already has quite a varied Korean fanbase; including all the celebrities who want to appear 'cool' by being photographed at his concerts. His concerts of which look quite interesting and spectacular.

Also, I've heard that he has good English skills (never heard him use English) since he studied in the US (Berkeley?) so he is not going to be struggle for universal appeal due a language barrier.

I'm just amazed at the number of people on this blog who seem to take any success by Koreans personally and seem to wish them failure, or for them to fall on their asses as soon as possible.

For me this goes for crap pop music wherever it comes from. The less successful it is, the less I'm forced to listen to it. They played it three times consecutively in the gym the other day. Should that make me want the song to do even better? Do I want to hear it blaring out of speakers in bars and cafes when I holiday in Europe next summer? Of course I want it to die as quick a death as possible.

But...really? Do you even have an opinion on the likes of say, Justin Bieber? Do you go online to find places to express your disdain for the likes of him? I couldn't give a shit about Bieber; I think his music's crap, but I don't listen to it, so it doesn't affect me, and I'm not angry at his success. That's generally how I approach entertainment-related things that I don't like that don't affect me; I ignore them.

But some people on here seem genuinely bitter that something Korean has gotten attention. As I said, weird.

But some people on here seem genuinely bitter that something Korean has gotten attention. As I said, weird.

It's not really weird when you think about it, it's human nature. I made the analogy before about the mother continuously boasting to her neighbors about how well her children are doing and eventually the neighbors start feeling, despite themselves, that they'd quite like the kid in question to fail at something. Probably a lot of people on here have to deal with kids telling them how wonderful Korea is day after day and how Psy and Girls Generation are liked all over the world, while those same kids show no interest in what the teacher has to say. Is is really surprising that some people start feeling they actually don't really want k pop to dominate world culture after all?

Plus, people don't 'go online to find places to express their disdain for PSY' as you put it I'm sure they were browsing the site, saw the topic and just
added their opinion. Just as you might if there was a conversation in the pub about Beiber. Did you go online to 'Find a site to express your disdain for people who criticize Psy? '

Last edited by edwardcatflap on Fri Sep 07, 2012 1:30 am; edited 2 times in total

I haven’t heard much about him but my wife loves his songs especially in norebangs.
I respect the guy. I find it funny that some of the K-pop groups and singers with model appearance get pushed very hard to market them as “international idols” but only Koreans feel that these attempts are being successful. Than comes this chubby and let’s just say not so attractive guy and beats them flat.
He has better performing abilities than most in the Korean music industry. Recently he had a big concert in Seoul and I caught it on MBC a couple of days ago. It was a spectacular show and he absolutely rocked it.